Another Side of Tibet

If the “Free Tibet” stickers on every Subaru within a thirty-mile radius are any indication, we’ve been there, done that, seen the documentary. And Brit Withey, artistic director for the Denver Film Society, knows we’re hip to it. “Everybody in Denver, and especially Boulder, has probably seen documentaries about Tibet,...

By Jef Otte

November 4, 2010

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If the “Free Tibet” stickers on every Subaru within a thirty-mile radius are any indication, we’ve been there, done that, seen the documentary. And Brit Withey, artistic director for the Denver Film Society, knows we’re hip to it. “Everybody in Denver, and especially Boulder, has probably seen documentaries about Tibet, and a lot of them are really similar,” he acknowledges. In fact, the Starz Denver Film Festival, which began November 3 and continues through November 14, has probably screened one every year.

Still, When the Dragon Swallowed the Sun, a documentary that screens tonight as part of the fest, isn’t your regular fare, he insists. “It’s not just sitting down with the Dalai Lama and hearing his perspectives. It’s really more about the perspectives of the older and younger generation, who don’t necessarily agree with this middle-of-the-road path the Dalai Lama has taken. They want to see an uprising against China.”

And then there’s the fact that director Dirk Simon has lived and taught in Denver for the past eight years. The crew is also from Colorado, and production was done here. Dragon screens tonight at 6:30 p.m. and again at 2:15 p.m. on November 14.

Starz is in the Tivoli building on the Auraria campus; tickets are $12. For more information, call 303-595-3456 or visit www.denverfilm.org.
Wed., Nov. 10, 6:30 p.m.; Sun., Nov. 14, 2:15 p.m., 2010

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